While Mark Ruffalo’s Bruce Banner hasn’t starred in a solo movie afterThe Incredible Hulkintroduced the hero, there are someHulkvillains the Jade Giant could soon face in a futureMCUproject. After Edward Norton’s Hulk fought Abomination inThe Incredible Hulk,Universal’s ownership of Hulk’s movie distribution rightshas kept Marvel from releasing another Hulk solo movie. As a result, Hulk has only appeared in the MCU as a secondary hero. Yet,Bruce Banner doesn’t appear inCaptain America: Brave New World, where Captain America fights both Red Hulk and the Leader.
Throughout his supporting roles, Hulk has fought villains such as Loki, Ultron, Hela, Surtur, Fenrir, and Thanos, and he has fought fellow heroes such as Thor, Iron Man, and She-Hulk. Hulk also fought multiple opponents in the Grandmaster’s Contest of Champions off-screen before Thor arrived at Sakaar, and as Smart Hulk, he took care of superhero matters during the Blip.Hulk’s lack of solo sequels hasn’t stopped him from being as active as Captain America, Iron Man, and Thor, but Hulk hasn’t been able to fight his own comic book villains since 2008.
10Bi-Beast
Bi-Beast Preceded Hulk In Grandmaster’s Contest Of Champions
In Marvel Comics, Bi-Beast is the name taken by two androids created by an anthropomorphic bird species called the “Avians”. The first Bi-Beast fought Hulk and self-destructed to protect his home, and the second replaced the original right afterward, inheriting all his memories.Marvel’s Bi-Beasts are known for their double faces, each of which possesses a different personality. Bi-Beasts are also extremely strong and durable, and they’re not bound by pain or exhaustion.
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AThor: Ragnarokeaster egg confirms Bi-Beast exists in the MCU. Grandmaster’s tower on Sakaar features the faces of the Contest of Champions' previous winners, including Hulk, Ares, Man-Thing, Beta Ray Bill, and Bi-Beast. Grandmaster’s monument to Bi-Beast not only suggests that Bi-Beast is as strong as characters like Thor and Hulk, but also that he lived in Sakaar at some point. Given that Hulk was Grandmaster’s favorite champion inThor: Ragnarok, there’s a chance he could return to Sakaar and fight former champion Bi-Beast some day.
9Maestro
Hulk’s Evil Variant Could Appear In Avengers: Doomsday Or Secret Wars
Maestro is a future variant of the original Hulk, reawakened from cryostasis in a post-apocalyptic future where nuclear war killed most of Earth’s population. This Hulk variant possesses Bruce Banner’s intellect and Hulk’s strength, as well as an uncharacteristic thirst for power. After stealing the “Maestro” title from Hercules and becoming the ruler of Dystopia, he kills Hercules, Namor, and the original Human Torch. Eventually,Maestro is defeated by Doctor Doom and a time-traveling Hulk.
Another potential member of the MCU’s multiversal Dark Avengers could be Mark Ruffalo’s Maestro, who could be Smart Hulk’s main enemy in Marvel’s nextAvengersmovie
Maestro is very unlikely to receive a comic-accurate MCU adaptation, but a new origin and a secondary antagonist role inAvengers: DoomsdayorAvengers: Secret Warscould give them a much more streamlined and exciting live-action debut anyway.Avengers: Doomsdaymight introduce evil Avengers variants, starting with Robert Downey Jr.’s Doctor Doom and an evil Captain America variant played by Chris Evans. Another potential member of the MCU’s multiversal Dark Avengers could be Mark Ruffalo’s Maestro, who could be Smart Hulk’s main enemy in Marvel’s nextAvengersmovie.
8Harpy
Liv Tyler’s Betty Ross Could Be The Next Character To Receive A Gamma Upgrade
One of the many Gamma mutates in Marvel Comics is none other than Betty Ross.MODOK injects Betty with Gamma radiation to transform her into the bird-like Gamma monster “Harpy” and brainwashes her into hating Bruce Banner. Hulk barely manages to reverse the transformation, though Betty’s Harpy persona remains dormant inside her mind, and it eventually returns in the form of Red Harpy. Betty Ross' two prior Gamma transformations made it easy for her to gain a third one, Red She-Hulk.
Curiously, Hulk first meets Bi-Beast while trying to cure Betty, and MODOK leads Bi-Beast to self-destruct.
Samuel Sterns' experiment to transform President Ross into Red Hulk is a success inCaptain America: Brave New World, and the fact that both Sterns and Ross are imprisoned in the Raft inCaptain America: Brave New World’s endingsuggests the Leader could try a similar experiment later on. Instead of MODOK, who apparently died after attacking Kang in the Quantum Realm inAnt-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, it could be the Leader who transforms Liv Tyler’s Betty Ross into a Gamma monster in the MCU.
7The Red King
Hulk May Already Have Fought The Red King Off-Screen In The MCU
In the comics,Angmo-Asan II a.k.a. the Red King is the ruler of Sakaar when Hulk is exiled by the Illuminati. The Red King declares war on the Hulk in fear of being replaced, but Hulk leads a rebellion against him with the help of Korg, Miek, and his future wife Caiera the Oldstrong, and leaves him on the brink of death. The Red King’s biggest fear comes true when Skaar takes over his reign and becomes the ruler of Sakaar.
The period between Hulk’s self exile at the end ofAvengers: Age of Ultronand his reunion with Thor inThor: Ragnarokremains an untapped source of creative material for the MCU
Surprisingly,She-Hulk: Attorney At Law’s ending introduced Skaar, suggesting that Hulk’s romance with Caiera in Sakaar took place accurately in the MCU. If a future project explores Skaar’s origin story, the MCU could revisit Hulk’s gladiator days and reveal that he defeated Angmo-Asan II, who would be a rebel instead of a king, as Grandmaster created Sakaar in the MCU. The period between Hulk’s self exile at the end ofAvengers: Age of Ultronand his reunion with Thor inThor: Ragnarokremains an untapped source of creative material for the MCU.
6Skaar
The MCU’s Skaar May Have Similar Motivations To His Comic Book Counterpart
Part of the surprise inShe-Hulk: Attorney At Law’s Skaar introduction is how nonchalant he and Hulk are when they arrive on Earth. Skaar seems a bit shy, but he accepts to visit Earth with his father. Hulk and Skaar’s first encounter goes very differently in the comics, where Skaar crash-lands on Earth after giving up Sakaar to Galactus. Driven by his desire to fight and kill the Hulk persona who fathered him,a much older and stronger Skaar attacks Hulk in an attempt to awaken the “Green Scar” within Bruce Banner’s mind. Eventually, Skaar grows close to his father and abandons his desire to fight Hulk.
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Hulk and Skaar seem to be on friendly terms right off the bat in the MCU. However, Skaar could still hold a silent grudge against his father for not being present during his childhood. Skaar could also feel overshadowed by his father’s popularity in Sakaar and disappointed by Smart Hulk’s much weaker physique. Similarly to his comic book counterpart, the MCU’s Skaar might also wish to bring out the Hulk persona who conceived him with Caiera, possibly by fighting him to the brink of death.
5Wendigo
The Wendigo Have Yet To Make Their MCU Debut
Similarly to the real-life legend, Marvel’s Wendigo is a species of feral humanoids affected by an ancient curse, which falls upon any human who eats human flesh in remote areas of Canada. The Wendigo are driven by nothing but hunger, and they can be almost as strong as Savage Hulk. The Wendigo can only escape their curse by dying, or when another human takes up the curse.
Werewolf by Nightincludes a reference to the Wendigo, suggesting the Wendigo curse exists in the MCU.
Marvel’s Wendigo are a regular foe of the Hulk, the X-Men, and Alpha Flight. In fact,it was a Wendigo who led Hulk and Wolverine to fight for the first time in Wolverine’s 1974 comic book debut. Despite not being directly connected to the X-Gene, they never made their live-action debut inFox’sX-Menmovie franchise, and they haven’t appeared in the MCU yet. Hulk’s fight against a Wendigo in the MCU could be a first step towards a fight against Wolverine in the MCU’s Earth-616.
4Juggernaut
Hulk’s strength has brought him head to head against similarly powerful heroes and villains in the comics throughout the years. The Thing, Rhino, and Juggernaut are some of the physically strong characters Hulk likes to butt heads with.Juggernaut, in particular, maintains a long-time rivalry with Hulk, as Juggernaut boasts his unstoppable strength while Hulk defends his title as “The Strongest One There Is.”
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Unfortunately, Hulk hasn’t been able to fight Juggernaut, Rhino, or the Thing in live-action for copyright reasons, as Twentieth Century Fox owned movie rights for the Fantastic Four and the X-Men for over two decades, and Sony owns the rights to Spider-Man and his enemies. When the MCU’s X-Men make their debut, the Avengers and the X-Men may have multiple crossovers. Of course, Hulk and Juggernaut’s rivalry could be one of the many that could finally be explored.
3U-Foes
The U-Foes Could Make Their First Appearance Following The Fantastic Four’s MCU Debut
The Fantastic Four’s origin story inspires another group of would-be heroes to replicate the space mission that provided Reed Richards and company with superpowers, but Bruce Banner intervenes in an attempt to save them. Infuriated, the group returns to Earth with a different set of powers and starts a feud with the Hulk, calling themselves the U-Foes.The U-Foes are composed of Vector, who possesses telekinesis; Vapor, who can turn into gas; X-Ray, who can turn intangible; and Ironclad, whose body transformed into metal.
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The U-Foes' origin is inherently tied to the Fantastic Four’s. Marvel’s First Family is finally making its MCU debut in Phase 6, seventeen years after the franchise began.The Fantastic Four: First Steps' titular team may travel to Earth-616 and find a new home there after establishing themselves in an alternate universe. Afterward, the U-Foes could feel jealous of the Fantastic Four, investigate their origin story, and start their feud with the Hulk.
2Absorbing Man
The MCU Could Give Absorbing Man A Third Chance To Fight Hulk In Live-Action
“Absorbing Man” is the moniker taken by the boxer Carl “Crusher” Creel, who’s picked by Loki to torment Thor. Using a magical potion, Loki grants Creel the ability to transform his body into any material he touches, including rare materials like adamantium, vibranium, and Uru.Absorbing Man has targeted Hulk and teamed up with a wide variety of supervillainsthroughout the years, but his abilities tend to backfire, leading to his capture.
Despite Absorbing Man’s two live-action adaptations, Hulk has never fought Carl Creel in live-action
Ang Lee’sHulkgave Absorbing Man’s abilities to David Banner, andAgents of SHIELDintroduced a more faithful adaptation of Carl Creel in its alternate universe. But despite Absorbing Man’s two live-action adaptations, Hulk has never fought Carl Creel in live-action. Whether by bringingAgents of SHIELD’s version of the character to the MCU or by introducing a new variant, the MCU could finally feature a battle between Hulk and Absorbing Man soon.
1Brian David Banner / Devil Hulk
Bruce Banner’s Father Is Hulk’s Ultimate Enemy
Brian David Banner is the reason why Hulk is born when Bruce Banner gets blasted with Gamma radiation, as his abusive treatment of Bruce and Bruce’s mother Rebecca caused irreparable damage to Bruce’s mind, creating the Hulk persona even before his first transformation. Bruce kills Brian in a fit of rage, but Brian later resurrects as a variant of Hulk’s darkest persona, Devil Hulk. Later on,Brian Banner’s soul is possessed by the One-Below-All — the multiversal personification of chaos and destruction.
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Whether as Devil Hulk, an embodiment of the One-Below-All, or as himself, Brian Banner could be the culmination of Hulk’s MCU story. The MCU has never acknowledged Bruce Banner’s father or the role he had in Hulk’s creation, but a future movie could give Bruce Banner a definitive sense of closure by having him and theHulkconfront Brian Banner. Making peace with his painful past could either eliminate Bruce Banner’s persona altogether or make his Smart Hulk transformation permanent.
